Mr. Martin Nolan:

Our customer satisfaction ratings show that and people recommend us to friends. They are an advantage to us.

In response to Deputies Stanley and Heyden, in reverse order, there are over 6,000 bus stops around the country. Some 94% of roads in the country are rural roads, which is nearly the highest in Europe. It is a large investment programme but I take the point about it being smaller and spreading it more. The Laois and south Kildare area always had private bus companies and we ran expressway buses through the area. It has been the hardest hit area since commercialisation happened. It brings us back to the point made by Deputy Martin Heyden that, with competitors, we are in a totally different place to where we were ten years ago from the revenue and cost base points of view. We must keep ourselves alive.

Having said that, we have the skill set of knowing what happens with buses and who are the drivers of small buses in every parish of the country. We want to work with the NTA on providing solutions. We do not want to be written out of that aspect.